History VideoGame / TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast

It was re-released in 2002 on the GameBoyAdvance, sharing a cartridge with the multiplayer-only ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords Four Swords.]]''

It was re-released in 2002 on the GameBoyAdvance, sharing a cartridge with the multiplayer-only ''[[TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords Four Swords.]]''

* {{Shotacon}}: Seemingly unintentionally. The official guidebook for the SNES included pictures of young Link falling, and in other awkward positions... as noted in PantsFree, he didn't appear to have anything under that tunic of his.

* DummiedOut: The Chris Houlihan room was removed from the GBA port. Thankfully, it was left intact in the Virtual Console release, but the name was changed to "Top Secret Room".
** In the original and Virtual Console releases, a skull statue that somewhat resembles the large skulls at the entrance of Yarna Desert in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening]]'' (which didn't get DummiedOut) exists that was apparently planned for DarkWorld dungeons (most likely Skull Woods due to its name), as it is part of the tileset for DarkWorld dungeons, but it was never used... in those versions. About a decade later, these very statues could be seen in the GBA version's added optional dungeon, the Palace of the Four Sword, which is located in the DarkWorld.

* UpdatedRerelease: The GameBoyAdvance version released in 2002 added voice bits for Link (taken from Young Link in ''Ocarina of Time,'') and a BonusDungeon unlocked after beating ''Four Swords.'' Also a new riddle sidequest for the Hurricane Spin.

* UndergroundMonkey: Stronger varieties of soldiers simply have differently colored armor. Interestingly enough, the color coincides with the colors of Link's own armor upgrades obtained later in the game (green being the standard version, blue being stronger than green, and red being the strongest). The DarkWorld's version of soldiers, Tauruses, come in red and blue varieties, though the red ones are rarer, and unlike the soldiers their weapons are different (they wield tridents instead of spears).
* UnwinnableByInsanity: It's possible to glitch your way into the first battle with Agahnim immediately after you rescue Princess Zelda right at the start of the game. If you beat him however, then you get transported into the Dark World -- which is a ''very'' bad thing since you won't have either the Magic Mirror or the Moon Pearl, meaning that you instantly turn into Bunny Link, can't return to the Light World, and can't do a thing in the Dark World beyond wandering around until you eventually get killed.

** The western comic adaptation by ShotaroIshinomori serialized in ''Nintendo Power'' and later published in graphic novel form.

* CallToAdventure

** Averted in the GBA re-release which alters his "dying" speech and his actually manages to finish what he was saying before dying. In the new version, he basically tells Link that its his destiny to save Zelda and that he really enjoyed their time together.

The third game in ''TheLegendOfZelda'' series, a prequel to the NES installments, ''A Link to the Past'' is commonly considered the best of the 2D games in the series. Known as ''Triforce of the Gods'' in Japan, It returned to the top-down adventure format of the first ''Zelda'', as well as featuring more of an emphasis on puzzles rather than fighting.

* UniqueEnemy: The weird blimp-like creature on the southern shore of Lake Hylia is the only one of its kind, and Lynels appear only on two screens of Death Mountain. There are also a few dungeon-specific monsters like the Ice Stalfos and the Antlions.

The story begins with Link receiving a [[CallToAdventure psychic message]] from Princess Zelda, telling him to come and save her from her imprisonment in the castle dungeon. Link's uncle also receives the call but dies, so Link must take up the call. He discovers that the evil wizard Agahnim is capturing girls from across Hyrule, and learns that the only way to defeat him is to obtain the three Pendants of Virtue from dungeons across Hyrule, and then collect the Master Sword. Of course, saving the world isn't that easy... Link is eventually forced to travel to the DarkWorld, a parallel version of Hyrule distorted by Ganon's wishes after he was sealed in the Golden Land (that story would later be told in ''[[Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]''), to save the captured maidens and the Princess, and finally defeat Ganon. The basic plot formula of ''A Link to the Past'' (gather three items, get Master Sword, huge plot twist, gather more items, fight final boss), known to some fans as "the Legend," would be repeated many times throughout the series.

** The GBA rerelease alters his "dying" speech so that he basically tells Link that its his destiny to save Zelda and that he really enjoyed their time together.

* NotTheIntendedUse: Butterfly net on Aganhim.

* TakeUpMySword: Link's uncle does this to him as the quest begins.

The story begins with Link receiving a [[CallToAdventure psychic message]] from Princess Zelda, telling him to come and save her from her imprisonment in the castle dungeon. Link's uncle also receives the call but dies, so Link must take up the call. He discovers that the evil wizard Agahnim is capturing girls from across Hyrule, and learns that the only way to defeat him is to obtain the three Pendants of Virtue from dungeons across Hyrule, and then collect the Master Sword. Of course, saving the world isn't that easy... Link is eventually forced to travel to the DarkWorld, a parallel version of Hyrule distorted by Ganon's wishes after he was sealed in the Golden Land (that story would later be told in ''OcarinaOfTime''), to save the captured maidens and the Princess, and finally defeat Ganon. The basic plot formula of ''A Link to the Past'' (gather three items, get Master Sword, huge plot twist, gather more items, fight final boss), known to some fans as "the Legend," would be repeated many times throughout the series.

* BadFuture: WordOfGod stated in the timeline included in the [[AllThereInTheManual Hyrule Historia]] that A Link to the Past (and by extension, the Oracle games, the first Legend of Zelda, and The Adventure of Link) occurred had Link failed to defeat Ganondorf in the Adult Timeline of ''OcarinaOfTime''. While the sages still manage to seal Ganondorf away, presumably the Imprisoning War cost many more lives than would have been lost if Link had won.

* DeathMountain: The TropeNamer returns and even has a DarkWorld counterpart that it shares a name with.[[hottip:*:Well, except in the Japanese version. In it, only one was called Death Mountain, and considering the names of the DarkWorld's locations, naturally it was the DarkWorld version. The Light World mountain was called Mt. Hebra instead, despite being the one of the two that contained the Spectacle Rock feature that was present in the Death Mountain incarnations in the previous two games.]] (Unlike the Light World counterpart, the DarkWorld counterpart has more ominous (but still [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome catchy]]) music than the rest of its world's overworld to go with its more twisted nature.)

** In the original and Virtual Console releases, a skull statue that somewhat resembles the large skulls at the entrance of Yarna Desert in ''TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' (which didn't get DummiedOut) exists that was apparently planned for DarkWorld dungeons (most likely Skull Woods due to its name), as it is part of the tileset for DarkWorld dungeons, but it was never used... in those versions. About a decade later, these very statues could be seen in the GBA version's added optional dungeon, the Palace of the Four Sword, which is located in the DarkWorld.

* [=~Everything's Better With Monkeys~=]: You have to bribe a cute little monkey to show you how to find the entrance to one of the dungeons.

* ExecutiveMeddling: The original subtitle was "Triforce of the Gods," but it was deemed necessary to change this for American audiences.

* FalseInnocenceTrick: This is how you trigger the boss fight with the boss underneath Kakariko village. You are told he kidnapped one of the maidens, and in some way you can say he did it, but he also disguised himself as her.

* HijackedByGanon: Apparently played straight, then subverted. Agahnim is the main baddie through much of the early part of the game, but revelations from rescued maidens reveal that Ganon is behind it all, [[spoiler:and finally Ganon himself says Agahnim was his alter-ego, meaning he was a disguise for Ganon, making Ganon the man behind ''himself'' - so there was no new villain, just an old villain in a new hat]]. Then again, the method that Ganon reveals himself does imply DemonicPossession

** [[IGotBetter He gets better]] after you beat the game, presumably because of Link's wish on the Triforce. We never find out what he was going to say, though. Guess it wasn't ''that'' important.

--->''[[color:white:__]][[TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast Not at all]]''

* FalseInnocenceTrick: This is how you trigger the boss fight with the boss underneath Kakariko village. You are told he kidnapped one of the king's daughters, and in some way you can say he did it, but he also disguised himself as the princess.

* BadFuture: WordOfGod stated in the timeline included in the [[AllThereInTheManual Hyrule Historia]] that A Link to the Past (and by extension, the Oracle games, the first Legend of Zelda, and The Adventure of Link) occurred had Link failed to defeat Ganondorf in the Adult Timeline of ''OcarinaOfTime''.

* StrippedToTheBone: In the game's intro, the King of Hyrule, recently murdered by Agahnim, is shown seated on his throne as a skeleton.

* MercyInvincibility: Useful for saving time and glitching your way past stronger enemies by getting hit by weaker ones. Also invoked when standing on lowered blue/orange blocks if you raise them by hitting a crystal switch... even though this doesn't actually damage you.

* SequelDifficultyDrop: While not an easy game, it's still easier than the first two, a trend which has stayed so far.

* IFoughtTheLawAndTheLawWon: Averted, the guards who are called to arrest Link in Kakariko Village are some of the weakest enemies in the game.